International drug trafficking rings finance terrorism, says UN

Ghada Wali, UN Deputy Secretary-General and Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, has warned that terrorist armed groups are using drug trafficking as a source of funding and have entered into conciliatory ties with organized crime groups.

Waly gave a speech at the signing of the Regional Framework Program for Arab States (2023-2028) between the Arab League and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the Launch of the Arab Plan for Prevention and Crime. Stated. Reducing the Danger of Drugs to Arab Communities” emphasized that because drug trafficking networks transcend national borders, the danger can be countered not only within borders but also through regional cooperation.

The spokesperson said that the launch of this plan is part of regional cooperation to address the challenges that are getting worse. It’s based on evidence-based practices, which means it includes government, the private sector and civil society.

Waly said that the regional framework for the Arab countries (2023-2028) in the field of prevention and reduction of drug risks is based on the positive results achieved during the past years, as the last program from 2016 to 2022 provided about $130 million to the countries of the region, and helped to participate 10,000 officials and officials in international and regional forums.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is doing a lot of different things these days, some of which are fighting corruption and human trafficking, and others which are related to drug rehabilitation. One of the things UNODC wants to do is to make sure that people who have recovered from drug addiction get the social rehabilitation they need in order to be successful.

The U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime is ready to help Arab countries fight drugs using forensic medicine and other tools. They say that the drug trade has been very resilient during the COVID-19 pandemic, proving that traffickers are able to adapt to changing situations.

Waly reported that the ILO estimates that youth unemployment rates in Arab countries are 42% in 2022, which is higher than global averages, noting that 60% of the region’s population are young people who must be spared risks, such as drugs, terrorism and extremism.

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